Beloved Kansas City eatery now a symbol of loss

Officials inspect a burned out JJ's Restaurant at the Plaza shopping district of Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013. Search crews at the site of the massive explosion that destroyed the restaurant, recovered one body Wednesday, and the city's mayor said there was no certainty the rubble wasn't concealing other victims. Mayor Sly James declined to say whether the body belonged to a man or a woman, though authorities have been looking for a woman who worked at JJ's restaurant and was seen there before the Tuesday evening blast and reported missing afterward. A natural gas leak turned into an explosion that leveled the building on Tuesday evening. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)
— AP

Officials inspect a burned out JJ's Restaurant at the Plaza shopping district of Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013. Search crews at the site of the massive explosion that destroyed the restaurant, recovered one body Wednesday, and the city's mayor said there was no certainty the rubble wasn't concealing other victims. Mayor Sly James declined to say whether the body belonged to a man or a woman, though authorities have been looking for a woman who worked at JJ's restaurant and was seen there before the Tuesday evening blast and reported missing afterward. A natural gas leak turned into an explosion that leveled the building on Tuesday evening. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)
/ AP

The explosion shattered glass in nearby buildings, and the resulting inferno sent an ominous smoke plume high above the outdoor shopping district.

In addition to the fatality, fifteen people were injured, including two who remained in critical condition.

Brad Russell, a lawyer for Heartland Midwest, released a statement late Wednesday expressing sympathy for the victims and saying the company is cooperating with authorities. "We are reserving any public comment until the completion of a thorough investigation," the statement concluded.

Until Tuesday night's explosion, JJ's had managed to survive in the shadow of a large construction project that has been under way across the narrow, one-way street for seven years. The work had complicated access to the street-corner restaurant, and a server needed hospital treatment in 2006 after she was struck by a rock sent flying by blasting for excavation of the construction site.

The construction project languished and eventually stalled out in 2008.

"We go in there all the time," said Amber Blahut, 29, who lives nearby and JJ's was a favorite spot to meet up with friends. "It's one of those places that there's been so much construction for so long that for a restaurant like that to maintain such a following."

It's uncertain whether Frantze will rebuild. The development that stalled out has been restarted and is expected to open later this year with a large law firm as a chief tenant, theoretically providing a new JJ's with a well-heeled clientele.